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Personally,
I think the 928S is GREATLY UNDER-RATED by many Porsche enthusiasts. Here are a few words of wisdom, some mine, some taken from other sources.
Over its entire production span, the 928 went through one significant body change. In 1987, the fourth generation S4 shape was smoothed out for better aerodynamics, given flush tail lights, and a new wing. Only the nose and tailcap changed.
The mechanicals were periodically upgraded, but the layout and all features remained basically the same. The 5.4 liter GTS even shares the same block with the first 4.5 liter 928 and still had another 0.6 liters of stroke to go in its design. A GTS owner would feel very at home in the first '78 to roll out of the factory. That says a lot for a design now almost 30 years old.
Strictly speaking, the 928 is more grand touring than sports car. It is fully laden with all the best luxury features and a big, powerful motor. The S4 is equipped with Porsche's 5.0 liter (303 cid) DOHC, 32-valve all-aluminum V-8 motor. It was built to fly down the autobahn in excess of 140 mph for hours on end without tiring the driver, but is equally at home on twisty back roads.
Technical Innovation
Porsche pioneered many technical features on their flagship luxury coupe including the famed Weissach Axle which was later adapted for use on other models. It is an automatic toe-correcting system which can be thought of as a sort of passive rear-wheel steering -- the first of its kind available to the public. It helps keep the rear wheels on track in certain lift-throttle or braking situations lending a very neutral, easy handling -- a significant change from the tail-happy 911s in '78.
Another innovation was the aluminum/silicon engine block designed without the mechanical protection of steel cylinder sleeves. Instead, the bores were etched to expose the silicon crystals providing a very hard, durable wear surface. In fact, aluminum was used quite extensively throughout the 928 including just about everything in front of the A-pillars and most other major castings. This lent considerable weight savings, a necessary component given all the luxury packed on the car.
Few 928s were offered with the rare 5-speed transaxle, most came with a superb Mercedes transmission adapted to the Porsche transaxle by Porsche. It is interesting to note that the gearbox is mounted in back, something the C5 Corvette borrowed from Porsche 20 years after the first production 928 and 22 years after the first 924. This was done to achieve a near 50-50 weight distribution.
Vintage Porsche wasserpumpers share a lot of technology, including cylinder head design in the 944 and 928 series, although the 944 equivalents did have a bit more compression, the heads and other systems are "identical" for all practical purposes. The series also shares the use of high silicon aluminum cylinder bores, a feature that rarely ever needs attention even in very high milage cars.
The technology is so similar within this series, if you own and understand one, you'll generally be able to work on the other model too. The V8 series ran from 1977 to 1995 and evolved along a similar path, from a great GT to a world class supercar in every way. The 1983 928S was the fastest car sold in North America, and cost more in 1983 (with options) than a new Corvette sitting on the showroom floor today.
Today the Corvette borrows a lot of technology from that initial 1977 Porsche design, including the use of a transaxle, but the Corvette still has not utilized the rear wheel steering or aluminum body panels to achieve the superior weight and balance of the 1977 928. To those of us who have a basic ability to diagnose simple electronic gremlins, do basic repairs, and pay attention to normal maintenance items, the 928 is still one of the best driving supercars available on the road today.
Personally,
I think the 928S is GREATLY UNDER-RATED by many Porsche enthusiasts. Here are a few words of wisdom, some mine, some taken from other sources.
Over its entire production span, the 928 went through one significant body change. In 1987, the fourth generation S4 shape was smoothed out for better aerodynamics, given flush tail lights, and a new wing. Only the nose and tailcap changed.
The mechanicals were periodically upgraded, but the layout and all features remained basically the same. The 5.4 liter GTS even shares the same block with the first 4.5 liter 928 and still had another 0.6 liters of stroke to go in its design. A GTS owner would feel very at home in the first '78 to roll out of the factory. That says a lot for a design now almost 30 years old.
Strictly speaking, the 928 is more grand touring than sports car. It is fully laden with all the best luxury features and a big, powerful motor. The S4 is equipped with Porsche's 5.0 liter (303 cid) DOHC, 32-valve all-aluminum V-8 motor. It was built to fly down the autobahn in excess of 140 mph for hours on end without tiring the driver, but is equally at home on twisty back roads.
Technical Innovation
Porsche pioneered many technical features on their flagship luxury coupe including the famed Weissach Axle which was later adapted for use on other models. It is an automatic toe-correcting system which can be thought of as a sort of passive rear-wheel steering -- the first of its kind available to the public. It helps keep the rear wheels on track in certain lift-throttle or braking situations lending a very neutral, easy handling -- a significant change from the tail-happy 911s in '78.
Another innovation was the aluminum/silicon engine block designed without the mechanical protection of steel cylinder sleeves. Instead, the bores were etched to expose the silicon crystals providing a very hard, durable wear surface. In fact, aluminum was used quite extensively throughout the 928 including just about everything in front of the A-pillars and most other major castings. This lent considerable weight savings, a necessary component given all the luxury packed on the car.
Few 928s were offered with the rare 5-speed transaxle, most came with a superb Mercedes transmission adapted to the Porsche transaxle by Porsche. It is interesting to note that the gearbox is mounted in back, something the C5 Corvette borrowed from Porsche 20 years after the first production 928 and 22 years after the first 924. This was done to achieve a near 50-50 weight distribution.
Vintage Porsche wasserpumpers share a lot of technology, including cylinder head design in the 944 and 928 series, although the 944 equivalents did have a bit more compression, the heads and other systems are "identical" for all practical purposes. The series also shares the use of high silicon aluminum cylinder bores, a feature that rarely ever needs attention even in very high milage cars.
The technology is so similar within this series, if you own and understand one, you'll generally be able to work on the other model too. The V8 series ran from 1977 to 1995 and evolved along a similar path, from a great GT to a world class supercar in every way. The 1983 928S was the fastest car sold in North America, and cost more in 1983 (with options) than a new Corvette sitting on the showroom floor today.
Today the Corvette borrows a lot of technology from that initial 1977 Porsche design, including the use of a transaxle, but the Corvette still has not utilized the rear wheel steering or aluminum body panels to achieve the superior weight and balance of the 1977 928. To those of us who have a basic ability to diagnose simple electronic gremlins, do basic repairs, and pay attention to normal maintenance items, the 928 is still one of the best driving supercars available on the road today.
Dogsharks said:
I think the 928S is GREATLY UNDER-RATED by many Porsche enthusiasts.
I agree, mine turns a lot of heads at Porsche meets or anywhere good cars get together, it will hold its own performance wise with the majority of new sports cars, all at a reasonable cost.
Dogsharks said:
The S4 is equipped with Porsche's 5.0 liter (303 cid) DOHC, 32-valve all-aluminum V-8 motor. It was built to fly down the autobahn in excess of 140 mph for hours on end without tiring the driver, but is equally at home on twisty back roads.
I don't know about the autobahn but it certainly did the job heading to Le Mans, I did Le Mans to Farnham Common to Scarborough stopping only for fuel and the tunnel and arrived feeling like I could turn around and head straight back without being overly tired. The next night I took it for a blast around the Peak District with PCGB and kept pace with a lot of well driven, much more expensive 911s.
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